Though not able to visit the Sault in-person as originally planned due to testing positive for COVID-19, Ontario NDP leader Andrea Horwath issued campaign statements and fielded questions from the media via Zoom at Soo Foundry & Machine Ltd. on Drive-In Road on Thursday morning.
Sault NDP candidate Michele McCleave-Kennedy attended the Zoom conference, accompanied by Myles Sullivan, United Steelworkers (USW) District 6 director.
McCleave-Kennedy began by stating “with the NDP we can have jobs that help us pay the bills.”
“In the leaders debate last Monday Andrea Horwath talked about issues that matter to northern Ontario. She talked about the autism situation and it's a story I hear at the doorsteps all the time. I spoke to a parent frustrated with the services she’s been trying to get for her child with autism. There’s not enough services for autism locally. Local workers have also talked to me about the expense in our community, the cost of housing, the gas prices going up, the cost of food. I’m here to work for families in this area,” McCleave-Kennedy said.
“Everyday workers need to be able to afford everyday life in our province and we can make that happen. We can make sure that wages are up, everyday costs come down. Every single Ontarian should be able to have a job that pays the bills and together we can lift wages and we can do that with a $20 an hour minimum wage which we’ve made a commitment to do,” Horwath said in her virtual address.
The NDP leader reiterated her party’s call to make mental health care, dental care and pharmacare available through OHIP.
Addressing the issue of soaring gas prices, Horwath told SooToday “what we want to do is regulate gas prices.”
“We want to stop the gouging and bring some stability to the gas prices in Ontario and we know that’s something that’s done in other jurisdictions and people need to be able to be sure of the gas pricing and be able to prevent those big oil companies from gouging at the pumps.”
Horwath, speaking from Ottawa via Zoom, had planned a campaign swing through northern Ontario beginning Thursday prior to testing positive for COVID but expressed her hope to be back to making in-person appearances soon.
McCleave-Kennedy was scheduled to meet with first time and young voters at the Canadian Bushplane Heritage Centre early Thursday afternoon.
There are six candidates running for MPP in the Sault riding, including:
- Ross Romano, running for re-election for the Progressive Conservatives
- Michele McCleave-Kennedy, NDP
- Liam Hancock, Liberal
- Keagan Gilfillan, Green Party
- Shane Pankhurst, New Blue Party
- Naomi Sayers, Independent
The provincial election will be held June 2.
